Birgit Schultes

About Birgit Schultes

Birgit Schultes, Ph.D., age 62, became Intellia’s Executive Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer effective January 13, 2025. She brings two decades of biotechnology and pharma experience across oncology, immunology, disease biology and cell therapy; she leads ex vivo CRISPR/Cas9 applications to generate novel cell therapies for oncology and autoimmune indications . Education: M.S. in Biology and Ph.D. in Immunology from the University of Bonn; Advanced Management Development Program at Boston University . Company performance metrics used for executive incentives include relative TSR vs the Nasdaq Biotechnology Index and clinical milestone PSUs (e.g., HAE Phase 3 enrollment and first BLA filing), aligning pay with strategic execution rather than near-term revenues/EBITDA typical of clinical-stage biotech .

Past Roles

External Roles

Fixed Compensation

• Not disclosed for Dr. Schultes in the 2025 proxy or related 8‑K filing. Her January 2025 appointment was announced without compensation terms .

Performance Compensation

Company executive incentive design (applies to executives including CSO):

• Short‑Term Incentive Program (STIP): Annual cash bonus tied to corporate categories and weightings (e.g., in 2024: Develop CRISPR Medicines 70%; Advance Science 10%; Build Long‑Term Sustainability 14%; Culture 6%) with realized multiplier (95% for 2024) for NEOs; sets precedent for functional leaders’ bonus structures .
• Market‑based PSUs: Three‑year relative TSR vs Nasdaq Biotechnology Index; vesting scale below aligns payout to shareholder returns .

Equity Ownership & Alignment

• Stock Ownership Guidelines: Executives must hold stock valued at least 3× base salary; phase‑in through FY2027 or fifth anniversary in role; retention requirements apply until in compliance .
• Hedging/Pledging: Prohibited for directors/executives; margin borrowing or pledging requires audit committee pre‑approval and demonstrated capacity to repay without pledged securities .
• Clawback: Amended and restated compensation recovery policy (Sept 13, 2023) mandates recoupment of excess incentive compensation for three years prior to any required restatement, per SEC/Nasdaq rules .
• Company equity plan context: 2025 equity plan uses double‑trigger change‑in‑control acceleration; minimum one‑year vesting (limited exceptions); no options repricing; no dividends on unvested awards; prudent share recycling limits .

Note: Schultes‑specific beneficial ownership (shares/RSUs/options) was not included in 2024 year‑end NEO tables due to her appointment in January 2025 .

Employment Terms

• Appointment: Promoted to Executive Vice President & CSO effective January 13, 2025, coinciding with the retirement transition of prior CSO; no individual compensation agreement disclosed in the 8‑K .
• Change‑in‑Control (plan‑level): If awards are assumed/continued, double‑trigger acceleration applies upon involuntary termination without cause or resignation for good reason within 12 months post‑sale; if not assumed, awards vest at sale (performance awards deemed earned at greater of target or actual) .
• Tax gross‑ups: Company does not provide 280G/4999 excise tax gross‑ups to executive officers .
• Insider trading policy: Enforced Rule 10b5‑1 plan framework; trades only when not in possession of MNPI; policy reiterates hedging/pledging prohibitions .

Performance & Track Record

• Scientific leadership: Leads multidisciplinary ex vivo CRISPR/Cas9 teams for cell therapies in oncology and autoimmune disease, leveraging deep translational experience in biologics and engineered T‑cells .
• Company milestones shaping executive incentives: 2024–2026 focus on completing HAELO enrollment, achieving MAGNITUDE enrollment for ATTR‑CM, and filing NTLA‑2002 BLA—these milestones drive PSU outcomes and management focus .
• Strategic reorganization: January 2025 reallocation prioritized NTLA‑2002 (HAE) and nex‑z (ATTR) and reduced workforce ~27% to extend runway to 1H 2027, sharpening execution priorities across R&D organizations .

Compensation Committee & Governance Context

• Strong say‑on‑pay support: ~97.9% approval in 2024, indicating broad investor endorsement of pay design .
• Peer benchmarking: Committee uses biotech peers to set competitive pay and equity mix; independent consultants engaged to advise (Pay Governance through July 2024; Alpine thereafter) .
• Equity headwinds/retention: ~99% of options outstanding were out‑of‑the‑money at $7.50 (4/14/2025); one‑time clinical PSUs introduced to improve motivation and retention around controllable value milestones .

Investment Implications

• Alignment: Schultes’ role sits squarely in Intellia’s cell therapy innovation; executive incentives tied to clinical milestones and relative TSR should align leadership behavior with value creation in HAE/ATTR paths and ex vivo platform maturation .
• Retention/pressure: Given OTM options and shift toward RSUs/PSUs, insider selling pressure should be muted while retention hinges on achieving milestone PSUs; double‑trigger CoC terms and clawbacks support governance discipline .
• Disclosure gaps: No Schultes‑specific salary/bonus/equity grant details disclosed yet; monitor subsequent filings (proxy/8‑Ks) for her compensation and ownership to refine pay‑for‑performance assessment .